Torshavn; Wednesday, 28 July, 2010

After a foggy start to the day the clouds started to lift quite rapidly and it looked as though it would turn into a good day, so, after having a brief wander around town and taking in the views from the Kings monument, I decided to go on one of the hikes that the guide book recommended (it should be noted this was the shortest one!), to the town of Kirkjubøur, on the south west coast of the island.

The guide book said it was an easy 7KM, 2 hour walk, which it was, from the start of the trail a 40 minute hike up out of Tórshavn! The walk climbs quickly into the hills and from the top there were stunning views out over the city and the surrounding islands. After a short walk through the middle of the hills, the vista changes to the islands to the South and West of the Faroes.

Most of the way the signage (small cairns of pilled stones) is excellent, but towards the end they start to run out and I ended up having a scramble down a very slippery path (not certain if it was the actual path or if I had picked up a sheep trail) down to the road.

I walked the further kilometre into the village centre and went to visit the ruins of Magnus Cathedral, the largest medieval building on the islands, and the first cathedral that they started to build (albeit that they stopped work at the reformation and never finished the job). Unfortunately, it is currently under scaffolding for heavy repair work so there wasn’t much to see.

I had intended on walking back the same way, but the final scramble down had put me off the idea, so instead I took the longer (by another 4KM) but less rocky route back along the road, which skirts along the west coast for a while before suddenly shooting across the middle of the island to Tórshavn.

By the time I got back into town my feet were aching quite a bit, so I stopped for a while to sit and watch the finals of the Rowing competition which is one of the highlights of the eve of national day.

I wandered back to the hotel and had a shower and a change of clothes (the scramble down had made quite a mess of me trousers) before wandering back out for a bite to eat and to take in more of the celebrations for national day, then with the sun still shining and a clear blue sky, I headed back to the hotel to try and rest my weary feet and legs.

I had a couple of hours rest before getting back up again just before midnight to wander down, with virtually everyone else in Tórshavn to watch the fireworks display. The display went on for a good ten minutes or so after which it was definitely time for bed.